Turning the page. Creating your library's future

A library is the cornerstone of research and innovation at a university. Our libraries are places of inspiration and discovery where researchers, scholars, learners and teachers come to find answers, uncover passions and create new knowledge.

A university library is a place of quiet study and reflection, but also an inspiring space where faculty, staff and students come together to collaborate and learn.

Frequently asked questions

The University Library Master Plan outlines the different types of spaces that are envisioned for all of the libraries. You will find visualization and simulation suites, experiential learning spaces, research commons, digitization suites, teaching spaces, spaces for students to de-stress and decompress. And yes, it includes individual, group, and community study and work spaces too.

The focus of this project is on reimagining what a library should be to meet the needs of a wide variety of campus stakeholders; it is not about getting rid of books. As all libraries do, we regularly go through our collections to make sure we have the resources that are high demand to our users. For this project we are working on a multi-faceted approach to reviewing the collection:

We will place more materials into on-campus storage by increasing our capacity in our current storage location. Any material in storage can be requested by users and delivered to the library location of their choosing within a few days.

We will withdraw some duplicate materials from the collection.

We are participating in a shared print archive network through the Council for Prairie and Pacific University Libraries (COPPUL). Academic libraries in Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta, and British Columbia are working together to manage the challenge of balancing access to print materials with competing demands for library space. There are dozens of programs such as this around the world.

Finally, we will be utilizing publicly accessible compact mobile shelving in order to densify the collection in public areas.

The University Library Master Plan outlines the different types of spaces that are envisioned for all of the libraries. You will find visualization and simulation suites, experiential learning spaces, research commons, digitization suites, teaching spaces, spaces for students to de-stress and decompress. And yes, it includes individual, group, and community study and work spaces too.